James 1:5-12 – The Necessity of Faith

Sermon & Translation by Nate Wilson for Christ the Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 5 Mar. 2023
Omitting the greyed-out text should bring presentation time down to about 40 minutes.

Introduction

vs.5-8 The Necessity of Faith in Requesting Wisdom from God

vs.9-11 The Necessity of Faith to Rejoice in the Eternal Rather Than the Temporal.

v.12 Conclusion


James 1:5-12 – Comparison Of Textual Traditions & VersionsA

Byzantine

NAW

KJV

Vulgate

Murdock Peshitta

1 ᾿Ιάκωβος, Θεοῦ καὶ Κυρίου ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ δοῦλος, ταῖς δώδεκα φυλαῖς ταῖς ἐν τῇ διασπορᾷ, χαίρειν.

1 From James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus the Anointed One. Cheers to the 12 tribes which are in the dispersion.

1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are X X scattered abroad, greeting.

1 Iacobus Dei et Domini [nostri] Iesu Christi servus duodecim tribubus quae sunt in dispersione salutem

1 James, a servant of God, and of [our] Lord Jesus the Messiah; to the twelve tribes dispersed among the [Gentiles]; peace.

2 Πᾶσαν χαρὰν ἡγήσασθε, ἀδελφοί μου, ὅταν πειρασμοῖς περιπέσητε ποικίλοις,

2 Start consid­ering it to be all joy, my broth­ers, whenever you happen to encounter various trials,

2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;

2 omne gaud­ium existimate fratres mei cum in temptation­ibus variis incideritis

2 Let it be all joy [to you], my brethren, when ye enter into [many and] various trials.

3 γινώσκοντες ὅτι τὸ δοκίμιον ὑμῶν τῆς πίστεως κατεργάζεται ὑπομονήν.

3 knowing that the testing for genuineness of your faith has the outworking of steadfastness.

3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

3 scientes quod probatio fidei vestrae patientiam operatur

3 [For] ye know, that the trial of your faith, maketh you possess patience.

4 ἡ δὲ ὑπομονὴ ἔργον τέλειον ἐχέτω, ἵνα ἦτε τέλειοι καὶ ὁλόκληροι, ἐν μηδενὶ λειπόμενοι.

4 But that stead­fastness must have a complete effect in order that you may be complete with integrity, lacking in nothing.

4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

4 X patientia autem opus perfectum habeat ut sitis perfecti et integri in nullo deficientes

4 And let pat­ience have its perfect work, so that ye may be complete and perfect, [and] may lack nothing.

5 Εἰ δέ τις ὑμῶν λείπεται σοφίας, αἰτείτω παρὰ τοῦ διδόντος Θεοῦ πᾶσιν ἁπλῶς καὶ μὴB ὀνειδίζοντοςC, καὶ δοθήσεται αὐτῷ.

5 Now, if someone among y’all is lacking wisdom, let him be asking from God – the one who gives to all generously without fault-finding, and it will be given to him.

5 X If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

5 si quis autem vestrum indiget sapientiam postulet a Deo qui dat omnibus affluenter et non inproperat et dabitur ei

5 And if any of you lacketh wisdom, let him ask [it] of God, who giveth to all freely, and reproacheth not; and it will be given him.

6 αἰτείτω δὲ ἐν πίστει, μηδὲν διακρινόμενος· ὁ γὰρ διακριν­όμενος ἔοικεD κλύδωνιE θαλάσσης ἀνε­μιζομένῳ καὶ ῥιπιζομένῳF.

6 But he must ask in faith, without doubt­ing, for the one who is doubting is wind-blown and tossed like a storm-wave at sea,

6 But let him ask in faith, nothing waver­ing. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

6 postulet autem in fide nihil haesitans qui enim haesitat similis est fluctui maris qui a vento movetur et circumfertur

6 But let him ask in faith, not hesitating: X he who hesitateth is like the wave[s] of the sea, which the windX X agitateth.

7 μὴ γὰρ οἰέσ­θωG ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐκεῖνοςH ὅτι λήμψεταί τιI παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου.

7 so that man must not sup­pose that he will receive anything from the Lord,

7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

7 non ergo aestimet homo ille quod accipiat aliquid a Domino

7 And let not that man expect X to receive any thing of the Lord,

8 ἀνὴρ δίψυχοςJ ἀκατάστατοςK ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτοῦ.

8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

8 vir duplex animo incon­stans in omni­bus viis suis

8 who is hesitating [in his] mind, [and] unstable in all his ways.

9 Καυχάσθω δὲ ὁ ἀδελφὸς ὁ ταπεινὸςL ἐν τῷ ὕψει αὐτοῦM,

9 But let the lowly brother boast in what is his that is on high,

9 X Let the brother of low [degree] rejoice in [that] he [is] exalted:

9 glorietur autem frater humilis in exaltatione sua

9 And let the depressed brother rejoice, in his elevation;

10 ὁ δὲ πλούσιος ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσειN αὐτοῦ, ὅτι ὡς ἄνθοςO χόρτου παρελεύσεται.

10 but the rich in what is his that is lowly, because he will pass on like a grass-flower,

10 But the rich, in [that] he [is made] low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.

10 dives autem in humilitate sua quoniam sicut flos faeni transibit

10 and the rich, in his depression; because, like the flower of an herb, so he passeth away.

11 ἀνέτειλεP γὰρ ὁ ἥλιος σὺν τῷ καύσωνιQ καὶ ἐξήρανε τὸν χόρτον, καὶ τὸ ἄνθος αὐτοῦR ἐξέπεσε, καὶ ἡ εὐπρέπειαS τοῦ προσώπου αὐτοῦ ἀπώλ­ετο, οὕτω καὶ ὁ πλούσιος ἐν ταῖς πορείαιςT αὐτοῦ μαρανθήσεται.

11 for the sun rises, together with the scorching-wind, and withers the grass, and its flower falls off, and the beauty of its presenta­tion perishes; thus also the rich man will be faded out in his pursuits.

11 For the sun is [no sooner] risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof fall­ethX, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.

11 exortus est enim sol cum ardore et arefecit faenum et flos eius decidit et decor vultus eius deperiit ita et dives in itineribus suis marcescet

11 For the sun riseth in [its] heat, and drieth up the herb; and its flower fallethX, and the beauty of its appearance perisheth: so also the rich man withereth in his ways.

12 Μακάριος ἀνὴρ ὃς ὑπομένει πειρασμόν· ὅτι δόκιμος γενόμενος λήψεται τὸν στέφανονU τῆς ζωῆς, ὃν ἐπηγγείλατοV ὁ Κύριος τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν.

12 A man who is steadfast in a trial is blessed, because, after he has proved himself genuine, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord promised to those who love Him.

12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord [hath] promised to them that love him.

12 beatus vir qui suffert temptationem quia cum probatus fuerit accipiet coronam vitae quam repromisit Deus diligentibus se

12 Blessed is the man who endureth temptation[s]; so that when he is proved he may receive a crown of life, which God hath promised to them that love him.


1When the father of the paralytic said, “I believe, help my unbelief,” Jesus didn’t reproach him for admitting weakness; Jesus answered his request because the man asked Him for help!

2The Apocryphal Wisdom 10:5 even asserted, “... she [wisdom] found out the righteous [Abraham], and preserved him blameless unto God, and kept him strong against his tender compassion toward his son [during his test on Mt. Moriah].”

3Luke 1:78 “...the Dayspring from on high has visited us” Speaking of Jesus coming from heaven.
Luke 24:49 "...you are endued with power from on high." Speaking of the coming of the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 3:17-19 “...to comprehend… the height-- to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge...” (NKJV)
Ephesians 4:8 describes Jesus’ ascension to heaven as "When He went up into the height..." (NAW)
And Revelation 21:16 describes the heavenly city in terms of its “height” (among other attributes).
cf. O.T. passages like Psalms 18:16, 102:19. The LXX also uses it to describe God exalting the righteous (2 Sam. 22:34, 1 Chr. 14:2, Job 5:11) and to describe unrighteous human pride (2 Chr. 32:26, Eccl. 10:5-6, Isaiah 2:17).

4The only other occurrences in the NT are Luke 1:48 (referring to Mary in her poverty); Acts 8:33, and Philippians 3:21 (referring to Paul’s body). As a result, a number of commentators (none in my bibliography, however) have suggested that James is assuming that the rich man is not a true believer and will therefore glibly dismiss the coming judgment. The cognate verb gives more relevant results, however, particularly in James 4-5.

6Actually a different Greek word ευλογεω, but a synonym.

8Vincent and Robertson agreed, as did Faussett: “‘life’ constitutes the crown, literally, the life, the only true life, the highest and eternal life. The crown implies a kingdom.”

AWhen a translation adds words not in the Greek text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics or greyed-out text, I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Greek word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular. I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. NAW is my translation. My original chart includes annotated copies of the NKJV, NASB, NIV, and ESV, but I erase them from the online edition so as not to infringe on their copyrights.

BThe ancient Byzantine edition reads"ουκ" instead of "μη," but Nestle-Aland cites only three manuscripts which support this. Even the Textus Receptus supports μη, but they both mean "not," so there is no difference in meaning.

CCalvin: “The word liberally, or freely, denotes promptitude in giving…. he is ready ever to add new blessings to former ones, without any end or limitation.”
Alford preferred “simplicity,” writing that “God gives without adding aught which may take off from the graciousness of the gift.”
A.T. Robertson noted, “The evil habit of giving stinging words along with the money is illustrated in Sirach 41:22 and Plutarch (Deut adulat., p. 64A).”
Douglass Moo, however, commented that since Jesus’ sayings and Jewish wisdom literature (on which James heavily relied) used this word to mean “integrity/ sincerity” (noting that often this Greek word is the translation for the Hebrew תמים) “...the evidence suggests that James is not so much highlighting God’s generosity in giving as his single, undivided intent to give us those gifts...”

DRare word used only here and v. 23 and in the LXX of Job 6:3 & 25.

EThis is not merely a “wave,” but one formed during a storm on the sea. It is used to describe the waves that Noah encoun­tered in the great flood (4 Ma. 15:31), that Jonah encountered in the great storm (Jon. 1:4, 11-12), and that Jesus and the disciples encountered on the Sea of Galilee (Lk. 8:24). Only other occurrences are 1 Mac. 6:11; Prov. 23:34; Wis. 14:5 & 19:7. Vincent commented, “κλύδων describes the long ridges of water as they are propelled in horizontal lines over the vast surface of the sea…” ATR added, “a dashing or surging wave.”

FThe only other use of this Greek word is in the LXX of Daniel 2:35 “Then once for all the earthenware, the iron, the brass, the silver, the gold, were ground to powder, and became as chaff from the summer threshingfloor; and the violence of the wind carried them away, and no place was found for them: and the stone which had smitten the image became a great mountain, and filled all the earth.” (Brenton)
A.R. Faussett commented, “driven with the wind — from without. tossed — from within, by its own instability…”
Vincent: “From ῥιπίς, a fan. Anyone who has watched the great ocean-swell throwing itself up into pointed waves, the tops of which are caught by the wind and fanned off into spray, will appreciate the vividness of the figure.”

GThis word occurs 22x in the LXX, but only twice elsewhere in the NT: Jn. 21:25 (“...I suppose the world could not contain…”) and Phil. 1:17 (“...supposing to cause me grief…”).

HVincent: “Emphatic, and with a slightly contemptuous force.”
Moo: “‘That person’ is derogatory language...”

IA minority of the most-ancient manuscripts omit “τι/anything” (Sinaiticus, Ephraemi Rescriptus, plus a few more recent manuscripts.) This could be because of the “ti” immediately following a word that ended similarly with “tai.” It’s in the majority of the oldest-known manuscripts, and the Vulgate and Peshitta do not omit it.

JRare word only here and 4:8. Moulton & Milligan suggested that James coined this compound-word and that it became popular in the early church, making it an argument for an early date to this epistle. But the idea is not new, for instance, the apocryphal Sirach 2:12 “Woe be to fearful hearts, and faint hands, and the sinner that goeth two ways!” (Brenton)
The next word is almost as rare, occurring only here and 3:8, and in the LXX of Isa. 54:11 (“Poor stormy one…”). It has a synonym, ἀστήρικτος, found only in 2 Pet. 2:14 (“...cannot cease from sin, enticing unstable souls…”) and 3:16 (“... untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction…” ~NKJV).

K cf. related word ἀκαταστασία (“confusion”) in 3:16.

LVincent, Robertson, & Moo all asserted unequivocally that this means economically “poor” rather than spiritually “humble.”

M“James... bids the lowly to glory in this, that they had been adopted by the Lord as his children; and the rich, because they had been brought down into the same condition, the world’s vanity having been made evident to them.” ~John Calvin, 1551 AD
“Those of low degree may rejoice, if they are exalted to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom of God (as Dr. Whitby explains this place); and the rich may rejoice in humbling providences, as they produce a lowly and humble disposition of mind, which is highly valuable in the sight of God…. For this reason let him that is rich rejoice, not so much in the providence of God, that makes him rich, as in the grace of God, that makes and keeps him humble; and in those trials and exercises that teach him to seek his felicity in and from God, and not from these perishing enjoyments.”
~Matthew Henry, 1714 AD
“...the best remedy against double-mindedness is that Christian simplicity of spirit whereby the ‘brother,’ low in outward circumstances, may ‘rejoice’ (answering to v.2) ‘in that he is exalted,’ namely, by being accounted a son and heir of God... and the rich may rejoice ‘in that he is made low’ ... in that he is made, by sanctified trials, lowly in spirit, which is true matter for rejoicing.” ~A.R. Faussett, 1871 AD
“James… exhorts each of them to look toward their spiritual identity as the measure of their ultimate significance. To the poor believer… James says: take pride in your exalted status in the spiritual realm as one seated in the heavenlies with Jesus Christ himself. To the rich believer… James says: take pride... in your humble status as a person who identifies with one who was ‘despised and rejected’ by the world.” ~Douglas Moo, 2000 AD

NThis noun in the N.T. only here, Lk. 1:48 (Mary, lowly servant blessed), Acts 8:33 (In humiliation Jesus was taken away), and Phil. 3:21 (Jesus will transform our lowly body to His glorious one), but it appears dozens of times in the LXX.

OThis word “flower” appears only here and 1 Pet 1:24 in the GNT, but several places in the LXX of the O.T.

PA.T. Robertson noted that the Aorist verbs in this verse (“Rises… withers… falls off… perishes”) are timeless gnomics. Moo also commented that they are “omnitemporal.”

QThe only other two places this word occurs in the GNT mention daytime, but not the sun, only the wind (Matt. 20:12; Lk. 12:55). In the LXX, this Greek word is mostly describing the hot, dry “east wind” (Hos. 12:2; 13:15; Jon. 4:8; Isa. 49:10; Jer. 18:17; 28:1; Ezek. 17:10; 19:12). cf. similar wording in Jesus’ parable of the sower: Matthew 13:6 “but after the sun rose up they were scorched, and, on account of not having a root-system, they were withered.” (NAW) Vincent agreed, so also Faussett: “The ‘burning heat’ of the sun is not at its rising, but rather at [after] noon; whereas the scorching Kadim wind is often at sunrise (Jonah 4:8).”

RPeshitta and a few renaissance-age manuscripts omit “of it,” but the text assumes that this flower belongs to it, so there is no difference in meaning.

SThis is the only occurrence of this word in the GNT, but 17x in the Greek Old Testament.

TOnly one other use in GNT: Luke 13:22 “Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.” (NIV) Often translated “motion” in Brenton’s version of the OT in the LXX. Erasmus, following a very few Greek manuscripts removed one vowel to render πορίαις “with his riches,” and Calvin preferred this.

U Faussett: “...not in allusion to the crown or garland given to winners in the games; for this, though a natural allusion for Paul in writing to the heathen, among whom such games existed, would be less appropriate for James in addressing the Jewish Christians, who regarded Gentile usages with aversion.” (Vincent agreed, suggesting it denoted a priest’s mitre. Moo disagreed, as did Gill, who even suggested that it referred to the “Olympic games.”)

VThis verb is Aorist tense (“promised”), not Perfect (“has promised”). As for its subject, the majority of the oldest-known manuscripts (followed by the majority of Coptic and Russian versions) do not include a subject for this verb (“he promised”), and for this reason, the NASB almost brought itself to omit the subject, but couldn’t quite. The Latin and Syriac traditions, however, follow a dozen Greek minuscule documents which state “God” as the subject, and this is followed by the NIV (and the ESV followed the NIV as usual). But the vast majority of Greek manuscripts and lectionaries follow a minority of the oldest-known manuscripts which state “the Lord” as the subject, and this was followed by a minority of the Russian and Syriac versions as well as the KJV. I’m inclined to follow the latter, as it has the most Greek manuscripts and has been used from earliest times down to the present. But it doesn’t ultimately make a difference which is correct because “He,” “God,” and “the Lord,” all point to the same divine entity.

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